


Time Sensitive Operations

by Milo



Series: That College AU Where Luffy and Law Steal Zoro's Jacket [2]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Luffy and Zoro being little shits, M/M, Silly Situations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-26
Updated: 2015-09-26
Packaged: 2018-04-23 10:09:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4872805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Milo/pseuds/Milo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Luffy and Zoro are banned from the cafe on campus during Law's shift.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Time Sensitive Operations

Another big red X. Another great big negative ruining Luffy’s note on the calendar. Luffy stowed the red marker away in the little pirate mug where Zoro had chosen to put all of his pens and pencils. It was a Sunday, and Law had called them moments before to tell them that something had come up at work and that he couldn’t spend the afternoon with them.

“Man,” he said with a long, whiny sigh. “This is like the tenth time Law’s bailed on us this month.”

“Fifth time, Luffy,” Zoro, who was sitting on the bed behind him, chimed in.

“Whatever many times it’s been, it’s still stupid,” Luffy said. “I was really looking forward to hanging out with him, too! We were going to go to that restaurant where Sanji works and eat until we were stuffed--”

Zoro frowned. “I thought you said we were going to eat at the place that _didn’t_ have Sanji?”

“--Anyway, Law _always_ has too many things to do. Whenever I actually try and make date plans like Nami says I should be doing, he calls like hours before and tells me he can’t do it!” He threw his hands up. “It’s like he doesn’t care about us anymore, y’know what I mean?”

Zoro shrugged. “He’s busy,” he said. “The guy’s taking like eighteen credit hours a semester.”

In a perfect world where Luffy got everything he could ever ask for, his and Zoro’s and Law’s schedules would all line up so that they had a specific and consistent time period in which to see each other.

Well, in a perfect world, he would get unlimited free food on top of that, but being able to see his two boyfriends without much trouble was a little more important.

Luffy took classes between ten AM and three PM, with lots of extra free time in between to go for walks, to eat, to take a nap, and to play video games. Without proper time to chat to all his friends, Luffy generally found himself going a little stir crazy.

Zoro’s schedule was a little more busy, with him sleeping in til noon every single day (no exceptions whatsoever) and then taking classes into the evening. He also worked out every night (also with no exceptions whatsoever). But Zoro was also Luffy’s roommate, and made time in his schedule to see Luffy every day, and Luffy always kept that section of his day open for special Zoro time.

“What if I skipped one of my classes?” Luffy suggested. “I know Law’s a little less busy on Tuesdays, I could take a little time off--And you have that open hour right after three o’clock, right?”

“Law knows your schedule even better than you do,” Zoro said. “And he’d kill you if he found out you skipped again.”

Luffy hummed and stared at the calendar. Law had taken it upon himself to write out nice, neat little versions of their schedules on each and every date. There were even several slots for when he knew tests were coming up. To Law, the schedule was like a strict and unbendable contract.

“He’s so uptight all the time,” Luffy said. “He really needs to lighten up.”

There was a reason why it had taken Luffy and Law so long to meet for the first time, and that reason was Law’s hectic and time-sensitive schedule. Law barely slept, finding it generally unproductive, and got up for classes early in the morning. He attended faithfully until the late afternoon...and then left for his part time job at the cafe on campus.

Luffy sighed and glanced at his little note on the calendar again--”HANGIGN  OUT WITH TORAO AND ZORO!!!” it read in thick black letters with four smiley face stickers around it. His shoulders drooped and he pouted a little.

“I was _really_ looking forward to it…”

“Why don’t we go somewhere together, just us two?” Zoro suggested. “I heard they opened a new Chinese buffet not too far from here--all you can eat, seven bucks.”

While that _did_ sound like one of the most appealing things he’d heard all day, Luffy still shook his head. How could he go out and spend his big date day without his other favorite person in the whole world?

“I guess...It’s not really the same, though. I really wanted all three of us to spend time together!” he said as he plopped down on the bed beside Zoro. “It’s always just me seeing Law, or me seeing you, or you seeing Law. We’re never in the same room at the same time!”

The two sat together quietly as they contemplated their options. The lion head clock on the wall ticked back and forth. Law went to work and wouldn’t be back for at least several hours, and by then it would get dark and they couldn’t walk in the dark. But Luffy couldn’t just go spend the day with Zoro again. He always spent time with Zoro, like every day.

“What if we go visit Law while he’s at work?” Zoro suggested. “It’s only a fifteen minute walk across the campus.”

Luffy brightened up. “That’s a great idea!” he said, jumping back up to a standing position. “There’s food there, and all three of us can be together! It’s perfect!”

Luffy made a beeline for the door, pulling Zoro’s letterman jacket off of the hook and over his shoulders. The oversized jacket only fit him so well, extending past his arms and making him look a little more pumpkin shaped.

“I’ll bet Law will be so excited to see us,” he said. “He’ll probably smile all wide and tell us all about where he works, and maybe we can get some--Zoro, you can’t wear pajamas to the cafe.”

Zoro looked down at his combination of sweat-stained sleepwear and green bathrobe. “Why not?” he said. “I’m not doing anything else today anyway.”

“Well _I_ don’t care, but Law does. He always gets mad when you wear that outside the dorms,” Luffy said. “And we don’t want to make Law mad, okay? We’re gonna have fun!”

Zoro nodded, seeming to understand Luffy’s logic. He undid the knot holding his bathrobe together and quickly tossed it onto his bed along with his shirt. From the hamper, he pulled out one of the less-smelly shirts and a less-smelly pair of pants that were less creased and had less beer stains on it. He showed it to Luffy, who nodded in approval. It if wasn’t pajamas, Law wouldn’t be mad.

“Think we should bring some of those chocolates he likes?”

“Nah,” Zoro said. “It’s not a formal date, after all.”

“Oh, that’s true!”

 

* * *

 

When Luffy and Zoro walked in through the front door, the little bells tied to it chimed. A moment later, Law appeared at the counter with his best customer service smile--one that everyone else might have seen as genuine, but that Luffy immediately knew was fake.

And the second Law saw them, it disappeared. The only thing that he had to say to them was a simple, resounding, “No.”

“No?” Luffy repeated.

“You heard me.” Law gestured toward the door. “I don’t have time to entertain you two. Go on, leave.”

“Aww, what?” Luffy let out a whine. “Don’t you want us to spend time with you?”

“Not while I’m on my shift I don’t.”

Luffy put on his best impersonation of Law’s grumpy face and folded his arms. “Well...what if we want coffee though?” he asked. “If we’re paying customers, you can’t send us away!”

“Luffy, you hate coffee.”

“Yeah, it’s all bitter and gross and for adults.” Luffy paused. “...Wait a second--I _am_ an adult!” He looked at Zoro with a twinkle in his eye, put his hands on the counter, and looked Law dead in the eye. “Give me the most adult coffee that you have, Law, my good man!”

Luffy grinned, determined to prove Law wrong. Law simply stared at him for a long moment, before he sighed and grudgingly typed Luffy’s order into the register. “Alright, fine, I guess if you’re going to buy something I can’t force you out,” he said. “Any cream or sugar in that?”

“Yeah, lots!”

“How much defines ‘lots’?” Law asked.

“Honestly, just dump the whole container of sugar into his cup,” Zoro said, and Luffy laughed a little before nodding in agreement.

Law rolled his eyes. If he was resisting the urge to smile, Luffy couldn’t tell. He typed the rest of the order into the register before he looked at Zoro. “What about you, then? Should I put you down for an atomic sugar coffee too?” He stopped to look over Zoro’s choice of attire before making a disgusted face. “Zoro, what in the world are you wearing?”

“A shirt and some pants,” he said simply. Zoro looked at the little menu on the counter, squinted, and then looked back at Law. “...Do you have anything with alcohol in it?” he asked casually.

“This is a cafe, Zoro, not a bar. We don’t serve alcohol here.”

“Not even beer?”

“Beer counts as alcohol.”

Zoro frowned. “...Fine, I guess I’ll have coffee too,” he said. “No sugar or cream for me.”

Law typed into the keypad with surprising speed and then billed them, which Luffy decided to pay for, telling Zoro that it was his treat this time. They patiently waited for approximately six minutes, the majority of which Luffy spent whistling a tune that he had heard a man on the street with a guitar playing earlier. Law returned with their orders in to-go cups, obviously in the desperate hope that they would leave.

Oh, wouldn’t he be surprised.

“Thanks Law!” Luffy said, taking his and Zoro’s coffee. “Zoro, c’mon, there’s a seat open by the window!”

Law looked up at the ceiling and made a quiet, irritated little sound. “You guys, seriously--”

But Luffy had already darted away to the little table by the window that someone had only just left. He plopped down in one of the seats and put both of their cups down on the table. Zoro settled in the other seat a second later.

“Shishishishi! This is _almost_ like hanging out with Law, isn’t it?” Luffy whispered.

“Yeah--I think he’s happy that we’re here,” Zoro said. They both glanced back at Law, who was glaring at them from across the room. “Deep down, I mean. I’m sure things get hectic in here.”

Luffy swung his legs back and forth under the table and counted the stale muffin crumbs on it. “Sheesh, look at all of these,” he said. “The whole purpose of food is to eat it, not to drop it everywhere! Think about how much muffin this person lost! What a waste of good muffin.”

In one fluid movement Zoro brought his cup of coffee to his lips and took a long sip of it. Luffy looked from Zoro, to his own coffee, and then back at Zoro. He wasn’t...unsure about the coffee, of course not! But it certainly wouldn’t hurt if he knew what he was getting into.

“What’s it taste like?” he asked.

“Coffee,” Zoro said.

“Yeah, but what does coffee taste like?”

Zoro became thoughtful. Or, at least, became as thoughtful looking as was possible for Zoro. “Bitter,” he said. “But it’s a nice taste.”

Luffy stuck his tongue out. He hated bitter things. All bitter things were always bad; vegetables, medicine, bad candies, alcohol. He looked down at the coffee he’d ordered that was loaded with sugar, contemplating it for a moment before he picked it up again. He’d said he wanted it and he was going to drink it, bitter taste or no bitter taste!

He took a long swig of the coffee and swallowed it. Then, the flavor showed up.

“Eeeeeeewwwww…” he said. “It’s so bad…”

“Then why did you order it?” Zoro said. “You could have ordered a hot chocolate or something.”

Luffy looked shocked. “Whaaaaat? They have hot chocolate here?!” he exclaimed, drawing the attention of several other cafe customers. He looked back at the counter and cupped his hands to his mouth. “Hey, Torao! Why didn’t you tell me they sold hot chocolate here?!”

Law wasn’t looking at him, his red face in his hands. He shook his head and tried to ignore Luffy, who wasn’t going to have any of that. He got up from his seat and hurried over to the counter, where another barista was attempting to serve a trio of girls. He pushed past them and called into the back.

“Hey!! Hey Torao!!” he yelled. “Torao, can I have a hot chocolate instead??”

Mustering up every last ounce of patience he had left in his body, Law walked over to him and said calmly, “Luffy, please wait your turn.”

“I thought there was only coffee here, why didn’t you say there was also hot chocolate??” Luffy said. “Cause I _love_ hot chocolate!”

Zoro appeared next to him, sipping on his coffee. He looked at the now half empty cup. “It’s just not the same without Irish cream. Do you have any of that?” he asked Law.

“No, dammit, there’s no alcohol here--!”

“Hooooot chocolate!”

The girls who were trying to receive their order were standing around nervously and Luffy was paying them little to no mind. The younger person working the register was at a loss for how to get Luffy to go away and Luffy relished in this small amount of power as he continued leaning over the counter. He chanted, “Hot chocolate? Hot chocolate?” several more times to Law, and Zoro’s amused smile only egged him on.

In one swell motion, Law pushed Luffy back. Luffy yelped in surprise, but managed to land on his feet. He readjusted his straw hat and then looked at Law. Law was glaring at him, having crossed over from irritated to ferocious and suddenly Luffy’s idea of a fun time with his boyfriend had dissipated.

Seconds later, Law was pushing them out the door.

“You’re going to leave. Right now,” Law said. “And if I _ever_ catch you in here on my shift again--”

Luffy clicked his tongue. “Sooooo...you don’t want us to spend time with you at work?”

Law opened the door, and pointed to the sidewalk. “Out,” he said. “And _stay_ out.”

Luffy huffed, and gestured for Zoro to follow after him with the hand that still held the coffee he ordered. Zoro looked at Law and let out a chuckle at his face, which was red with anger now, before he followed after Luffy. The door shut with a dull jingle as the bells collided with the glass. Law inhaled, exhaled, and then resumed his best customer service face.

A man Law knew simply as “Kidd” had arrived on the scene just a minute too late from the cafe’s tiny kitchen. He looked around the cafe for any sign of the troublemakers before looking at Law, who was intently watching something out the window.

“Do you know those two?” he asked Law, jerking a thumb back to point at Luffy and Zoro who were waving from across the street.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Law said. “I’m dating them.”

“God, you sure know how to pick ‘em,” Kidd said. “Which one? The green one or the loud one?”

“Both of them.”

Kidd stared at him with an unreadable expression. “Kinky,” he muttered under his breath before disappearing into the kitchen once more. “I’m going to need an Irish cream myself in a second here…”

 

* * *

 

Next Sunday, Luffy was pleased to find that Law had an open slot in his schedule. He was less pleased when the day ended up with Sanji trying to fight Zoro with his own utensils, and Zoro trying to strangle Sanji with a cloth napkin, but at least they got to spend the day with Law.


End file.
